Towerlocked
by SeraphJewel
Summary: Snow White was locked away in a tower. She escaped years later, but what of the time in between? This story follows that time, presented in drabble form.
1. One

Disclaimer: _Snow White and the Huntsman_ is not owned by me. I take no profit from writing about the characters.

**Towerlocked**

One

She was only a child when they locked her away. Completely alone in the world with no one to defend her. At first she screamed, but then they choked her until her lungs burned. After that she learned to keep quiet.

The door closed behind her with a resounding _clang_. The sound felt so permanent to her young mind.

Her small eyes watched them timidly. Not once did they show her pity or offer a kind word. The treatment was so foreign she didn't know what to make of it. Yet it didn't hurt her because there were so much deeper pains inside her.

She lost her father, her closest friend and her kingdom all at once. All that was left now was her own life; for whatever reason, she was allowed to keep that for now.

Her body trembled from fear and cold. They turned their backs on her and left her alone.

She knew she should be crying. Her father's body was probably still lying on his bed with the dagger in his heart. She felt his loss but it was so raw and aching she couldn't yet manage any tears.

Slowly she took in her new surroundings. There were no silk sheets here or beautifully-woven rugs. No curtains hung on the tiny window. The fireplace was little more than a hole in the wall. The walls felt cold and damp under her touch. This room told her everything she needed to know: it was the place of a prisoner, not a princess.

She was young but she understood that much.

Tears finally came that first night. They felt hot against her chilled skin and made small pathways down her dirty cheeks. As they made their silent course she tried to focus on the little things: her father's laugh, William's mischievous smile, the song of the birds, the way her mothers fingers felt combing through her hair…

Those memories were still hers. She was Snow White, royal princess. Not everything in her was lost. Now all she had to do was keep it in this solitary place.


	2. Two

Two

They taught her music, language, reading, writing, all the things a young lady should know. They never guessed she would need to know how to deal with hunger that gnawed away at her stomach or a cold that seeped right down into her bones. They never imagined she would be tormented by nightmares only to wake with no one to comfort her. She was completely unprepared.

She once sought to be alone for pleasure but now it was a gaping emptiness she would give anything to fill. Every time footsteps approached her heart would beat a little faster; she couldn't tell if it was from fear or hope. They brought her food and water, and piles of straw. But no kind words and certainly no chance of leaving this place.

The food burned her fingers as she ate. It didn't feel like enough for a stomach accustomed to richer food.

Rats poked their little noses out of cracks in the stones. She welcomed them like old friends and fed them her scraps. She promised them more if they came by to see her again.

Birds perched on her tiny window and sang to her. She lifted up her head to answer back. Her voice was sad and lonely; the birds listened and lingered to keep her company.

In time she would speak with them. They would give no words back but it felt as if they understood. She always had a way with animals. She held out her hand and they came to her. She wished she could keep them but she couldn't bear to imprison them, too.

If they did return, it would be their own choice. But she would not force them.


	3. Three

Three

She learned the ways of her new world very quickly. The straw they gave her was not nearly enough to make her bed any more comfortable, but it was good for occupying her time or giving her heat. One bucket of water would quench her thirst all day only if she rationed it wisely and skipped bathing. That was another thing she learned: to accept the dirt and grime now matted in her hair and smeared on her skin.

Most of all, she learned to not dwell in the past. If she did she would fall into despair and never climb back up again.

To keep her fingers from becoming numb and stiff she twisted the pieces of straw together. One of the cooks showed her this while they waited for pastries to cool. When she finished there was a tiny doll for her to play with.

She called one William and the other Snow White. She played for a while until images of the real William floated in her mind. She wondered if he was alive, where he was, if he still remembered her. All things that she quickly pushed back out again.

They sometimes gave her sticks along with the straw. She used them to remember her letters. When it grew cold she thought of another use for them. If only she knew how to make a fire…

The cold wrapped her up so tightly she was starting to forget what it felt like to be warm. Her tiny window didn't give the sun much room to shine. She held out her hands hoping for the slightest touch. It was never enough.

Another lesson to learn here: nothing she wanted would ever just be given to her.


	4. Four

Four

Her screams never made it far. They would absorb into the harsh stone or be whisked carelessly away by the wind. The birds and rats heard her but could do nothing to soothe her. One night screams woke her up but they did not belong to her. At first she covered her ears to block their pain but it continued relentlessly. Slowly she lowered her hands to take it in.

Those were her people suffering down there. Her sorrows were nothing compared with theirs.

What was Ravenna doing to them? Was she taking away their homes and families just as she did with Snow White? Or was it something even worse? Snow White's heart ached for them.

She was too small to reach the window. Her mind played out what was happening below. The unknown horrors haunted her. Every new scream made the room feel smaller, reminding her she was trapped and helpless.

Her beautiful kingdom was being turned into a dark and angry place, and there was nothing she could do about it. It felt as though all of this pain reaching her was Ravenna's way of reminding Snow White of this.

She was often told the story of how she got her name. How her mother wished for a child with skin white as snow, hair black as night, lips red as blood… And there was one more thing. She couldn't remember it but felt it was the most important quality of all.


	5. Five

Five

Back and forth. Back and forth. Mindless, repetitive. Her hands were quickly covered in blisters, which was all she accomplished so far. She bit back whimpers and carefully picked out the splinters. Blood was welling up and her arm muscles ached from use.

She poked her fingers through her threadbare dress. Every day it was getting more and more tattered. The fabric gave way and ripped apart. Snow White took the torn pieces and wrapped them around her throbbing hands.

Back and forth. Back and forth. A tiny wisp of smoke. She stooped down to protect it from the cold. She kept her breaths gentle and encouraging. More smoke. For once her trembling came from something other than cold.

A spark. Quickly she fed it as it grew into a flame. The warmth felt so good she wanted to cry but she held the tears back; she didn't want to disturb the fire.

It burned fast and bright. She fed the fire with straw and more scraps from her dress. It lasted long enough to warm her hands but then was gone as quickly as it came. No matter; she could bring it back again.

Later. Her arms were aching and her hands were still raw. But that little flame was enough to give her hope. It assured her she could do this: she could endure this place.

For how long, she didn't know. She would take it one day and one spark at a time.


	6. Six

Six

The world was changing without her. It wasn't just the passing of the days or the change of seasons; the kingdom and its people were changing as well. The voices that reached her tower sounded harsh, angry, defeated, frightened… Snow White's heart reached for them but what could she do? She was only a child with no allies to fight for her.

But her childhood was cut away the moment her father died. She was growing in the loneliness of her tower. In time the guards brought her a new dress; it was too big but in time she would fill it before it too turned to rags.

She heard talk of how beautiful girls were taken away by Ravenna. Their beauty became her power. Now and then Snow White considered her reflection in the water. She was still young but her body was slowly growing into that of a woman. Would Ravenna come for her beauty one day, too? No, she couldn't have it. Snow White's beauty was within; untouchable.

This thought gave her strength. Ravenna would expect Snow White to wither away into nothing, a helpless despairing creature who let the ugliness of the new world consume her. Snow White pressed a hand to where her heart was beating and vowed to never give in. No matter what came her way she could not let Ravenna win.

Even if that meant she stood alone in the queen's dark world.


	7. Seven

Seven

Metal scraped against the stones. Snow White thought she was the only prisoner her, but that was no longer the case. She watched from behind her cage as they dragged the new person by. After being here alone for so long, she didn't know how to feel.

The one they brought in was an old man. He already looked defeated before the door was even shut behind him. Perhaps that was why Ravenna chose him to keep Snow White company: he would offer the girl no hope.

"Hello..?" Her voice cracked in the still air. The old man stirred to meet her eyes.

His whole body was ragged and tired, his shoulders hunched and head bowed under whatever burdens brought him here. He looked hollowed out. The life was already gone from his eyes.

Snow White realized that this was the future Ravenna was promising for her. The girl would remain in this tower until she became like the old man. Until she was nothing more than a shell. And yet knowing this, Snow White did not turn away. She looked at the man and changed him in her mind: he was not a foreshadowing but an opportunity.

"Hello," she called out again. "You're not alone, sir. I'm here." He didn't answer, but she learned to live without words. "Let me sing for you."

Her voice reached out to him through the void between their two cells. When she finished the old man shifted and she thought she saw him smile.

Later the guards came to take the old man away again. Snow White hoped that what she gave him would be enough.


	8. Eight

Eight

The pain stabbed and twisted her abdomen. Earlier she was breaking apart crumbs for the rats but now all she knew was the pain. Pressing her hands against her belly relieved her, but not enough.

The blood came later. Snow White understood what it meant but there was no way to fight it. She was becoming a woman more every day and it would not be long before Ravenna remembered it.

Ravenna's brother certainly knew. He would come when he thought she was asleep to watch her body slowly take its womanly shape. Snow White kept her face from him when she could help it but he still caught glimpses. He knew of her growing beauty and yet the next day would come with her still in her prison.

While other beautiful girls were stolen away, she was left to blossom. The answer for it chilled her more than any winter night. Snow White never let it show what she knew. She felt his eyes on her; she would not let it penetrate.

She closed her eyes, placing a hand on her heart to feel its strong beat. It was growing too, despite everything.


	9. Nine

Nine

This time when she heard chains dragging across the stone floor, she pressed closes to the bars and watched. The prisoner was younger than the first, his body stiff and proud despite his chains. She waited until the guards were gone before she dared reach out to the man.

"Who are you? Why are you here?"

"I am waiting to die." His voice was strong but tainted by bitter tones. Snow White could barely see him in the shadows. She could almost believe the stones themselves were speaking. "Only those about to die are sent up to this cursed tower."

It was something she always suspected. Though why she continued to live day after day, year after year was a mystery.

"I will not die," she answered back. "Not here in this tower. Not by Ravenna's hand." She though she heard him laugh but was given no more words in exchange.

He did not stay as long as the old man. Soon the guards came again to take him away. His head was lifted as he walked bravely to his death.

Snow White was once again left alone. Was it true that the only way to leave this tower was when facing her own death? Two times now her only visitors were those condemned to die. She just swore she wouldn't be defeated that way, but what other escape was there? She wasn't like the birds or rats who came and went from the tower at will.

But then she remembered that man's eyes. The look in those eyes was one she needed if she was to ever leave her prison: the look of a fighter.


End file.
